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Clean Getaway: Meat Waste Joins Biofuels At Luxury Jet Show

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By Allison Lampert

LAS VEGAS, Oct 22 (Reuters) - At the world's greatest market program in Las Vegas luxury jets are luring purchasers with their sleek silhouettes, plush cabins - and increasingly, their use of alternative fuels.

Fuel producers and jetmakers are keen to display novel forms of air travel fuel considered less hazardous to the environment, from utilized cooking oil to the clearly less glamorous meat waste.

Business jet operators, like airlines, have actually acquiesced environmental pressure on air travel and committed to halving carbon emissions by 2050 compared to 2005.

Their hope is that adopting renewable fuel to suppress emissions could make company jets more attractive to ecologically conscious buyers - specifically corporations dealing with concerns over sustainability from investors or green campaign groups.

The schedule of less contaminating private jets might also spare the rich and the unfavorable publicity experienced by Britain's Prince Harry and his partner Meghan over a recent personal jet trip to southern France.

Five Gulfstream jets on display in Las Vegas are utilizing California-produced fuel from inedible beef tallow.

The latest waste-based fuels include "fats, grease and oils that are by-products of the food market," stated Bryan Sherbacow, primary industrial officer of Boston-based biofuel manufacturer World Energy, which produces fuel from meat waste utilized by Gulfstream.

"All of our item is inedible."

A few of the other 79 aircraft on display are anticipated to be powered by 150,000 gallons of other sustainable fuel mixes anticipated to be pumped at the show.

FLIGHT SHAMING

Private jets represent less than 0.1% of total yearly carbon emissions internationally, but can release, typically, up to 20 times more carbon emissions per guest mile than jetliners, according to the London-based personal charter company Victor.

Prince Harry has defended his periodic use of personal jets to guarantee his household's safety, and has said that on the rare events he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.

But planemakers state occurrences such as the furore over his itinerary have actually included fresh obstacles for a market currently aiming to justify its contribution to cutting corporate costs.

"Incidents of flight shaming involving using personal jets are regrettable when you think about that our market has actually provided fuel performance improvements of 40% over the past 40 years," said Bombardier Aviation President David Coleal.

Bombardier believes increased sustainable fuel usage will help the industry make inroads with corporations and rich purchasers. According to industry data, billionaires only have a 19% organization jet ownership rate.

But even an image transformation - with jets sporting sticker labels like "this aircraft flies on renewable fuels" and organisers including alternative fuel pumps for checking out airplanes - is unlikely to satisfy all critics at the Oct 22-24 luxury jet event.

Environmentalists and some experts remain skeptical that biojetfuels, generally blended 50-50 with kerosene, will make a considerable effect on public perceptions about luxury travel.

"No amount of Jatropha or Brazil-nut fuel can make business jets look eco-friendly," said air travel expert Richard Aboulafia.

Demand from business jet operators for renewable fuels now far surpasses supply and their interest could drive future production, Sherbacow stated.

World Energy, which produces 40 million gallons of biofuel at its California plant, might broaden production approximately 150 million gallons by 2022.

Corporate charter companies and specialists are also seeing more interest from clients who wish to buy carbon credits to offset emissions from their flights.

Brian Proctor, CEO of Mente Group, a U.S. consultancy, said emissions contributed in a business jet utilization study his company just recently completed for a Fortune 500 business.

"At the end of the day, I believe that rate, expense per hour, variety, speed and efficiency, that's still the (sales) motorist. But I believe people are ending up being more familiar with the sustainability of operations and how it impacts the world." (Reporting By Allison Lampert, Editing by Tim Hepher and Alexandra Hudson)